Warriors-Suns Preview

By NOEY KUPCHANPosted Feb 07 2014 12:35PM

Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson helped the banged-up Golden State Warriors get back on track their last time out.

The sharpshooting duo has shined against the Phoenix Suns of late.

With David Lee likely to sit again, the visiting Warriors try to continue their recent success against the Suns on Saturday night.

Two nights after shooting 31.2 percent - its worst mark in nine seasons - in a 91-75 loss to Charlotte, Golden State (30-20) regained its form in Thursday's 102-87 win over a Chicago team which is among the league's best defensively.

Curry led the way with 34 points and nine assists, and Thompson scored 22 for his first 20-point display in three weeks. Thompson hit 8 of 16 from the field after shooting 29.4 percent in the previous five games.

"I won't forget how great of shooters Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry both are," coach Mark Jackson said. "I will never tell them to stop shooting. It won't happen. That's somebody else in a suit and tie on the sideline. As long as I'm here they will have the green light. I believe in them, trust them and they have responded."

The Warriors trailed by as many as 16 in the second quarter before stepping on the gas. They shot 48.2 percent, going 11 of 22 from 3-point range.

"We were just trying to stay positive. No point in sulking and pouting. Nobody's really got time for that during the game," said Curry, averaging 30.0 points while shooting 53.0 percent over the last 10. "We were talking to each other, trying to figure out what was going on, what we needed to do differently, and it worked out."

Golden State managed to pull away despite the absences of Andrew Bogut (shoulder) and Lee (shoulder, hip), who has missed two of the last three games. Lee is expected to remain out through the weekend, but Bogut could return Saturday.

"We are a no-excuse basketball team, so whoever is in uniform it is a great opportunity for them to step up," Jackson said.

After putting up 30 points in a 106-102 loss at Phoenix on Dec. 15, Curry scored 14 to go along with career highs of 16 assists and 13 rebounds in an easy 115-86 win over the Suns on Dec. 27.

Golden State held Phoenix to its fewest points of the season in that game and has taken seven of eight in this series. Thompson is averaging 23.3 points while shooting 56.3 percent in the last four.

"We have a couple more home games (before the All-Star break)," Thompson said. "We have one on the road which is a big test for us against Phoenix, so it's really important for us to finish strong and get as much momentum as we can."

The Suns (29-20) have followed a season high-tying five-game winning streak with back-to-back losses, 101-92 to Chicago on Tuesday and 122-108 at Houston on Wednesday. Phoenix allowed the Rockets to shoot 54.9 percent, its highest mark surrendered this season.

Goran Dragic, averaging 25.7 points and shooting 60.7 percent over the past six games, has scored at least 15 in every game since being held to eight points in the Dec. 27 loss to Golden State.

The Warriors have won nine of 11 on the road after opening 6-9. They are 12-1 as the visiting team when giving up 101 points or fewer compared to 3-10 when they don't.

The Suns are averaging 107.8 points at home to rank near the top of the NBA. However, they've scored 97.3 per game in dropping two of three there.

Copyright 2014 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Dragic, Phoenix beat depleted Warriors 122-109

By BOB BAUMPosted Feb 09 2014 12:38AM

PHOENIX (AP) Goran Dragic had a special person he wanted to impress.

Son Mateo - age three months and three days - attended his first NBA game.

"I was a little bit hyped," Dragic said. "I tried to show him what his daddy can do."

As has been the case often in this breakout season, Dragic did a lot, especially when it mattered most.

He scored 13 of his career-high 34 points in the final seven minutes and the Phoenix Suns pulled away to beat the depleted Golden State Warriors 122-109 on Saturday night.

Dragic, who also had 10 assists, topped 30 points for the sixth time this season as the Suns (30-20) pulled a half-game ahead of the Warriors (30-21) for the sixth-best record in the Western Conference.

After two sub-par performances in losses, the Suns might have had their best offensive game, coach Jeff Hornacek said.

"These guys were sharp," he said. "The one thing I told them, especially that fourth quarter, they played smart."

Stephen Curry had 28 points and nine assists and Harrison Barnes scored 23 points for the Warriors, who were without front-line starters Andrew Bogut and David Lee.

Both missed their second straight game, Bogut with left shoulder inflammation, Lee with a left shoulder sprain and left hip strain.

"We are a no-excuse team," Golden State coach Mark Jackson said. "Obviously we're missing those guys but we still have more than enough to win ball games. Give the credit they played extremely well. They are a very good offensive team."

Dragic, left out of the All-Star game, made 10 of 13 shots. He tied his career best for 3-pointers made with six, in seven attempts. His torrid finish came after he experienced a dizzy spell. After a couple of sports drinks, he felt better.

Dragic said Hornacek has made it clear that when the game is on the line, it's time to step up.

"I was kind of cruising the third quarter," Dragic said. "I just hit one 3 and I was not aggressive enough, and then the fourth quarter I just started playing. I just started feeling good."

Curry was 0 for 3 shooting and scoreless in the fourth quarter.

"They got hot," Curry said. "Gerald Green and Dragic made some big-time shots. We had some shots that spun in and out. It was one of those nights we thought that, besides the boards, we played well all-around. We didn't have timely stops."

Phoenix took the lead for good with the last basket of the opening quarter and was up by as many as 14 in the third but Curry kept the Warriors close. Golden State twice cut it to two in the final quarter, the last time at 102-100 on Jermaine O'Neal's tip-in with 7:55 to play.

Dragic sank two 3s in an 11-2 run that finally put the Suns in control for good, 113-102 on Tucker's basket with just under four minutes to play.

Phoenix outscored Golden State 20-9 over the final 7:33.

The Suns opened the second half with a 13-3 run, taking a 76-62 lead on Tucker's 3-pointer, but Curry scored four and Barnes hit a 3 in a 7-0 spurt that cut it to 78-71 with six minutes left in the third quarter. Golden State outscored the Suns 11-4 over the final two minutes of the quarter to slice Phoenix's lead to 95-90 entering the fourth.

Phoenix led most of the first half but never by more than nine points and was up 63-59 at the break.

Without Bogut and Lee, the Warriors were outrebounded 26-15 in the first half and 45-34 for the game.

"We had to crash the boards," Tucker said. "The boards were key, the paint was key. We know Steph is going to make crazy shots, Klay (Thompson) will get a couple off. That's stuff we can live with. With the boards, not giving up second opportunity points was key and that's what I really wanted to capitalize on tonight."

Notes: The Suns have won 10 in a row in games where Green scored at least 20 points. ... Both teams close out their pre-All Star game schedule at home against Miami, Phoenix on Tuesday and Golden State on Wednesday. ... The Warriors played on the road for only the second time in a stretch of 11 games.

Copyright 2014 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Notebook: Suns 122, Warriors 109

THE FACT: The Suns passed the Warriors for the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference and second place in the Pacific Division.

THE LEAD: Red-hot Goran Dragic needed just 13 shots to score a career-high 34 points and added 10 assists as the Phoenix Suns beat the Golden State Warriors 122-109 Saturday night at US Airways Center. It was second win in three meetings for the Suns (30-20) over the Warriors (30-21) this season.

Gerald Green added 23 points and P.J. Tucker had 16 points, 15 rebounds and four steals for the Suns.

Stephen Curry had 28 points and nine assists and Harrison Barnes added 23 off the bench for Golden State, which played without starters Andrew Bogut (shoulder) and David Lee (shoulder, hip).

The Suns, coming off a 14-point loss in Houston on Wednesday, shot 54 percent from the field and 52 percent from 3-point range (11-for-21).

QUOTABLE: "Mateo, my son, it was his first game and I was a little bit hyped. I tried to show him what his daddy can do." -- Goran Dragic on his 3-month-old son attending the game

THE STAT: Dragic became the second player in Suns history to score at least 34 points with 13 shots or fewer. The other instance came 44 years ago, when Gail Goodrich (10-for-13 from the field, 16-for-18 from the line) scored 34 against -- you guessed it -- the San Francisco Warriors on March 17, 1970.

THE STAT II: The Suns are now 7-3 in the Pacific Division, better than Golden State (7-4) and the division-leading Los Angeles Clippers (5-4).

THE STAT III: The Suns have won 10 straight games when Gerald Green scores 20 or more points. He had 25 on Saturday.

THE STAT III: Phoenix is 11-0 when shooting 50 percent or better from the field this season.

TURNING POINT: The Suns led 102-100 with 7:54 to play but put the game away with an 11-2 run, featuring two of Dragic's six 3-pointers and five from Tucker to make it 113-102 with 3:50 left.

QUOTABLE II: "We are a no-excuse team. Obviously, we miss those guys but we still have more than enough to win ballgames. Give them credit, they played extremely well. -- Warriors coach Mark Jackson on playing without Bogut and Lee

QUOTABLE III: "It wasn't like we played bad defense on any of those shots. They were dagger shots. A big-time player made big-time shots so we'll tip our cap to him." -- Stephen Curry on Dragic's 10-for-13 shooting night, including 6-for-7 from 3-point range

HOT: Snubbed by fans and coaches for the next week's NBA All-Star Game, Dragic has now scored 20 or more points in seven straight games.

NOT:Jermaine O'Neal missed seven of 11 shots, most of them right around the basket.

NOTABLE: The Suns have more home wins against the Warriors (87) than any other team. ... Jackson recorded his 100th win as coach of the Warriors on Thursday, joining Al Attles, Don Nelson, Ed Gottlieb, George Senesky and Alex Hannum in Golden State history. ... The Warriors are 22-4 when holding opponents under 100 points, but now 8-17 when they don't. ... The Suns are 30-20 after 50 games, their best record through 50 games since the 2007-08 season. ... Suns coach Hornacek's 30-20 record is the fourth-best record in franchise history after the first 50 games as Suns coach. Only Paul Westphal (39-11 in 1992-93), Scott Skiles (32-18 in 1999-200) and Alvin Gentry (32-18 in 2008-09) are better.